Dear TIRF Board Members and Supporters,

I recently traveled to Malaysia to fulfill a promise made two months ago. I was invited back to Perak to conduct a one-day workshop for approximately 100 Malaysian English teachers who instruct high school students. In Perak, nearly 95% of students in night high schools are of Chinese heritage. Although they take the majority of their courses in Chinese, they receive about six hours of English instruction to ensure they are bilingual, as English is also an official language in Malaysia.

I began the workshop by discussing several hot topics and controversies in English language teaching (ELT), including accuracy vs. fluency, active vs. passive vocabulary, teaching English vs. teaching about English, input vs. output, native English-speaking professionals vs. non-native English teaching professionals, and technology-enhanced ELT vs. ELT driven by technology. I then invited participants to identify the top-10 challenges they face in their teaching and facilitated a discussion unpacking each challenge through examples and best practices.

The discussions were lively, centering on issues such as managing mixed-level students in the same classroom, classroom management, teaching academic writing, and addressing the needs of the digital generation, as well as teacher development in the AI era. The participants were enthusiastic and outspoken, expressing a keen interest in exploring new teaching methodologies and reflective practices. Despite having conducted similar workshops many times over the decades, I found it fascinating that Malaysian teachers are eager to learn about global trends in ELT and the professional development opportunities available to them.

I recognize the need for more workshops for English teachers and see the value in TIRF providing additional professional services in countries like Malaysia, Vietnam, Nepal, Pakistan, and China. A viable approach to reach out is to partner with local organizations or educational bureaus to create sustainable plans. I am pleased that TIRF has already begun collaborating with UIC (United International College, a partnership between Hong Kong Baptist University and Beijing Normal University) to host a joint symposium in May 2025, themed “AI-Empowered English Language Teaching and Learning.” This conference will feature AI experts in data sciences alongside ELT specialists, providing diverse perspectives on whether technology will lead ELT or if ELT will guide technological development, ultimately fostering creativity and innovation in English language education over the next decade. We will provide further details to our supports in due course.

I always feel invigorated when I focus on our profession as TIRF President, and I believe all TIRF Board members share this sentiment, despite our busy schedules. I hope TIRF can provide further resources, professional services, and activities to engage with the global community. I look forward to our TIRF Board meeting in March 2025 in Long Beach, California where we will further discuss our strategic plan, reflect on our practices, and reach out to more partners to advance our mission.

Happy New Year to all!

Warm regards,

Jun Liu, PhD

TIRF President